LA Luck
by diariesstelena
Summary: Elena moves to LA for a brand new job, but gets caught off guard when acquainted with lvatore
1. Chapter 1

**Ahh. I am kind of back with a very short multichapter fic. Not looking to make this any longer than 15 chapters, but I do hope that you enjoy it and let me know what you think in the reviews! You can always follow me on my social media sites: tumblr – diariesofstelena | twitter – diariesstelena **

**XXXXXXX**

The sun was beating down on a very hot and sweaty Elena as she maneuvered through the parking lot trying to find a parking spot in an – apparently very busy – Ikea. It was June, and 26 year old Elena had just gotten to town after packing up her small and quaint life in Atlanta for something more busy, and elaborate like herself, in downtown LA.

She finally found a parking spot in between a mini-van and a motorcycle as she squeezed her way in and put the car in park. Elena pulled the keys out of the ignition and opened up her mirror to see how the LA heat was treating her. Elena looked in the mirror and almost jumped at the horrid sight of her own face. She was a mess. She was hot. She wasn't wearing any makeup, she had a messy bun on the top of her head, some paint on her denim shorts from painting her new place, and a loose pale pink tank top paired with her Birkenstocks.

Elena closed the mirror after realizing there was nothing she could do to combat the torturous LA heat, and left her car, quietly mumbling and complaining about the motorcycle beside her. She never understood motorcycles quite frankly. Such a small little vehicle takes up an entire parking spot, plus it was a hazard.

Elena walked into the air conditioned Ikea and let out a sigh of relief mixed with a tiny moan at the cold air that was blasting against her heated olive tone skin. She quickly made a mental check list of the things she needed to get so she could get home and quickly get her place together before dinner tonight with a friend. She needed shower curtains, bath mats, pillows, and bed sheets.

With a little extra pep in her step now that she wasn't a melting mess, Elena went off to get all the things she needed.

**XXXXXXX**

"Come on, move your ass," Caroline yelled at her best friend that was completely content with laying on a showcase bed at Ikea.

"Come lay with me, Care, it's so soft and warm," Stefan said with a quiet hum in his voice, indicating that he was more than okay with taking a nap right there.

"Stefan you are in public! I'm leaving!" Caroline said as she slapped his leg and moved to walk away from the 28 year old child she was apparently babysitting.

Stefan closed his eyes and let out a disappointing groan and mumbled some words as he dragged himself out of the bed and began to jog after Caroline.

"Remind me why we're here again?" Stefan said as he looked at the little kid beside him that kept on crying.

Caroline let out a sigh and faked a cry as she stopped and turned around to look at Stefan. Caroline loved the boy, but he knew exactly how to get under her skin.

"For the 100th time, I am going out to dinner with a friend who just moved into town, and I need to get her a nice house warming gift. Can you remember that much or would you like me to make a PSA about it?" Caroline asked sarcastically as she poked a perfectly manicured finger at his chest.

Stefan laughed as he took Caroline's finger and brought it to his mouth to bite, only to have her pull away before he could do the deed. "Right, okay, gotcha." Stefan said obediently as he silently followed Caroline around the store as she looked for a gift.

They had eventually made their way into the candles and flora area and Caroline decided to make a nice little basket filled with candles, and other homely trinkets, maybe adding in a succulent. She also picked up a large singular wooden shelf for herself.

They made their way to checkout as they made plans for tomorrow night, hoping to do something together.

"Maybe we can invite my friend? I mean, she's new in town, I think we should get her in our little social circle! Wouldn't hurt, right?" Caroline suggested as they walked towards the exit with Caroline holding the shelf on her shoulder, trying to be dramatic, and Stefan holding the bags.

"Yeah, I'm sure that would be nice. It can get lonely out here sometimes." Stefan said genuinely as he tried to assure Caroline it would be a good idea.

As they exited Ikea, Caroline quickly turned to look at Stefan excitedly at him saying yes to her friend, that she forgot she was carrying the wooden shelf on her shoulders. As Caroline turned to face Stefan, the shelf swung around with her, making Stefan try and grab onto it before it hit someone but it was too late when a perky looking brunette got clocked in the head, sending her flying to the ground.

"Care!" Stefan yelled in a reprimanding tone, but also in a worried tone as he grabbed the shelf, placed it down and went to attend to the girl that Caroline just delivered a knockout blow to.

"Oh my god, did I do that?!" Caroline yelled in her high pitch voice that was immediately filled with regret and worry.

Stefan knelt down on the ground trying to examine the damage, "Hey, are you okay? I'm so sorry my friend is such a klutz…" he trailed on before he saw the blood on the girls hand as the girl yelped in pain from where her hand held her head.

"Aw man, what the fuck just hit me? A goddamn meteor?" The girl groaned in pain and tried to sit up but failed.

"Oh no, I think you cut your head open. Here, let me see. I'm a doctor, I can help." Stefan said calmly as he took the girls hand away from her face to look at her closely.

As Stefan saw her face for the first time, he couldn't help but think how attractive she was. But quickly snapped out of it, going into doctor mode as he looked at the tiny cut above her left brow.

Caroline quickly came and knelt down on the other side only to gasp in shock as she yelled, "ELENA?! Oh my god I can't believe I just almost killed you, are you okay? I'm so sorry the shelf was really long and I turned and it jus –" Caroline said, rambling like usual when she was overwhelmed before Stefan stopped her.

"You know her?" Stefan asked incredulously as he looked up from Elena and at Caroline.

"Wow, there are almost 4 million people in LA, and you're the one to clock me in the head. I'm fine, Care. Thank you, for the very, very warm greeting into town," Elena said as she closed her eyes and groaned as Stefan pressed down on her cut to try and stop the bleeding.

"Yeah! This is my friend who just moved into town. Stefan meet Elena, Elena meet Stefan." Caroline said in a rushed tone as she tried to see if Elena was okay.

Elena opened her eyes only to see a pair of green eyes looking back at her. There was something in his eyes, this determinism yet shyness that made Elena relax, and not groan in pain again. "Wow, you're kinda cute," Elena said without shame. Caroline let out a guffaw at Elena's remark. Caroline had known Elena all her life before she moved out to LA five years ago, Elena was flirty, but she was never this direct.

Stefan blushed and pressed his lips into a tight line, "yeah I think you hit your head pretty hard. It's just a small cut, you need about 5 stitches. Here, let me drive you to the hospital." Stefan offered as he got up and carefully supported Elena with a strong arm around her waist – a strong arm that hadn't gone unnoticed by Elena – as she tried to stand upright. "Yeah, maybe," Elena said as she leaned on his arm for support.

"Caroline, can you please grab my purse?" Elena asked as Stefan led her to the parking lot, towards the car. Caroline quickly nodded and grabbed her purse and picking up the spilled contents.

"Elena, where's your car? I can drive us to the hospital, and Caroline can follow in her car." Stefan said as he turned to look at her. Elena was looking to the side with her eyes closed shut as if trying to pass through a moment of pain.

Stefan moved to stand in front of her, but still kept his arm around her waist in case she needed the support. He looked down at her and placed his left hand around her head, reaching for a handkerchief in his pocket and holding it above her brow as she hissed and winced from the pain. "Hey, you okay?" Stefan whispered as he held Elena's head in his hands, and looked down at her.

Elena nodded weakly and looked up at him, "I drive a black Ford Fusion, you'll see it," Elena said as she opened her eyes to find Stefan staring back at her intently. Just for an instant Elena forgot about her headache, forgot about the open gash on her head and focused just on him. Why? She didn't even know him!

Stefan was the first one to break the intense gaze when he heard Caroline honk from behind them in her white little Prius.

"Could you please tell her to fuck off and stop honking, dear lord my head is pounding," Elena said with annoyance at her best friend, making it no secret that she has no problem using expletives.

Elena loved Caroline to death, and she would do anything for her, and with her, but she really knew how to press someone's buttons. They had always maintained a close relationship even when Caroline moved five years ago, so when Elena announced she had found a job in LA, Caroline was more than happy.

Stefan bit back a smile at her annoyance, laughing. Stefan had been with this girl for not even five minutes and she's sworn quite a bit. No wonder her and Caroline are friends, they must get right along.

"Yeah, let's get you to that hospital," Stefan said looking for her car. Once he spotted it, he placed Elena in the passenger seat and told her to hold the cloth to her head as he drove to the hospital.

**XXXXXXXX**

"Ow, ow, ow," Elena said as Stefan cleaned up the cut on her head carefully. He had a cotton swab dipped in some rubbing alcohol on the end of a pair of tweezers as he gently dabbed at the cut.

"Take a deep breath in," Stefan said distractedly as he focused on the task at hand, quickly going into doctor mode as soon as he had a patient on his hands.

Elena took a deep breath in and let it back out when Stefan put the tweezers down and reached for the probes and needle, diligently getting back to work on her head.

"About earlier, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it when I said you were cute," Elena said without thinking, trying to fill the silence with something.

"Ouch, consider this doctors feelings hurt," Stefan said feigning offense as he began to close up the cut, feeling Elena begin to tense.

"Wait, no, not that you aren't attractive, it's just I don't know what came over me. I meant I was sorry for being direct, and you know what? I'm just gonna shut up now," Elena suggested to herself as she closed her eyes and gulped in pain.

Elena was usually very good with strangers and with people, she didn't know what was happening. Maybe it had something to do with the huge piece of wood that thwacked her in the head.

"I'm just joking, no need to shut up. Keep talking, it'll keep you distracted from the obvious pain you're in," Stefan said calmly, breaking his eyes away from her to look down in her large brown eyes. Stefan only just realized how good she smelled, when he was so close to her. She smelled like coconuts and spring.

"What obvious pain? I'm fine, I can handle it." Elena said reassuringly, quickly dismissing anything Stefan was saying that would point out some sort of weakness in her.

"And is that why you're grabbing onto my hip so tightly?" Stefan mused without looking away from the cut he was still sewing up. Elena gasped silently and looked down at her hand that was gripping his waist, as if to pull him in closer in between her legs. Elena hadn't even realized she was holding onto him, it was like second nature. But she quickly dropped her hand and mumbled an apology.

A few minutes later, Stefan dropped the needle and rolled around on his chair to grab a little hand mirror to show Elena the damage that had been done. "All stitched up and good to go, Elena…" Stefan trailed off, indicating that Elena had never told him her full name.

"Just Elena for now is good, don't you think?" Elena said teasingly as she grabbed the mirror from him, brushing his hand as she took it. Stefan nodded and laughed at this girl sitting before him as she brought the mirror up to her face and looked at the cut. He was right, it was small, but big enough to give her this stupid headache that just wasn't going away.

"Now, the cut might be small but you migh –" Stefan was saying before Elena cut him off and completed his sentence.

" – might have suffered a minor concussion, so I should take some painkillers and take it easy for today, right?" Elena asked in a sweet tone, not wanting to seem completely bitchy as she practically did his job for him.

"Right," was all Stefan could say as he narrowed his eyes slightly at the perky little brunette sitting in front of him. It had been a while since he had met someone quite like her.

"Sorry, I was a nurse back home, this kind of stuff is like second nature," Elena said quickly, trying to dismiss any negative thoughts he may have conjured up in his mind.

"Impressive, why didn't you tell me earlier? You could have sewed yourself back up!" Stefan quipped playfully as he got up and discarded his rubber gloves, coming back to where Elena was.

Elena just nodded and scoffed at this awfully innocent playful flirting that was going on between them since they first got to the hospital.

"Now, are you good to go or do you need me to drive you home?" Stefan asked shyly, but also seriously as he was responsible for this patient.

"Sorry, I don't bring guys back home on the first date," Elena said jokingly as she jumped down and grabbed her purse, before she turned to Stefan to say goodbye.

Stefan just laughed at this woman before him. Stefan was a really shy guy around girls, but he found himself letting a little loose with her. But, he was officially intrigued, to say the least. She was pretty, funny and clearly had a strong head on her shoulders, plus it didn't hurt that she was a nurse.

"I apologize, I didn't realize we were on a date," Stefan shot back with a raised eyebrow, as he crossed his arms over his chest. As soon as he crossed his arms over his chest, Elena could see the taut muscles beneath his plain white v neck. Okay yes, Stefan was good looking, but Elena wasn't looking for anything at all right now.

"Well, I guess it's a surprise, Doctor…" Elena trailed off, just as he had earlier, indicating that he too hadn't disclosed his full name to her.

"Just Stefan is good for now, don't you think?" he shot back, copying her very sentence from earlier.

"Fair enough, Stefan. Thanks for getting me all patched up, I appreciate it." Elena said slinging her bag over her shoulder and flipping her hair over her other shoulder as she moved to leave the room.

"Hey, Elena, why don't you give me your number? I could check up on you later today, see if you're doing alright…" Stefan suggested with complete sincerity, but he was also blushing from shyness. Stefan was never this direct, ever.

"My number is confidential…plus, if I need you, I'll get a hold of you, no worries Doctor." Elena said smiling at him a final time before leaving him standing alone in the room.

Wow, she is quite the girl, Stefan thought as he watched her leave and close the door behind her.

**XXXXXXXX**

The next couple of weeks passed by quickly and before Elena knew it, she was off to her first day of work here in LA. She was excited to get started but also nervous to be starting out in a brand new place.

Elena walked through the doors of the hospital and went towards the nurses' desk to introduce herself and sign herself in. She quickly put down her name and went to talk to the head nurse about her placement and any other questions she had.

"Hey there, my name is Elena Gilbert, I was the one who got the transfer and recommendation from Doctor Whitby in Atlanta?" Elena asked in a form of a question, just to see if they were still aware of her arrival.

"Ah, yes, yes. Welcome to Sinai Medical Center! I'm Alexia, but you can call me Lexi, and I'm the head nurse, nice to meet you, I've heard wonderful things! I'm not sure how you were placed back in Atlanta but here you're pretty much on call the entire time, and you more often than not tend to a specific doctor and help them out with patients and what not, performing the routine checkups and minor tests that are required." Lexi explained in one go.

"Oh that's great! Very similar to how I was placed previously so it shouldn't be a problem. Who's the doctor I will be working alongside with closely?" Elena asked with curiosity as she flipped through a chart Lexi gave her.

"Oh, hold on, it should be written here," Lexi said as she went to the right hand wall plastered with charts and schedules of all sorts before she found what she was looking for.

"Ah, you'll be working alongside Dr. Salvatore! Don't worry, he's an absolute delight, and a sweetheart." Lexi said giggling as she handed Elena another chart with patients and room numbers.

"Dr. Salvatore…" Elena said testing it out. Sounds like an old Italian man if you had asked her. But she was glad to have found a job and she wasn't about to complain in the slightest.

"Okay, great. Thanks a bunch, Lexi!" Elena said as she walked out of the nurses office and into the main hall to go check up on the first patient.

Elena was about halfway down the hall before she turned a corner and bumped into a strong chest, with arms that wrapped around her waist instinctively.

"Oh, hey Ikea girl! Why are you wearing those?" he asked once he let go of her waist, and moved back to get a good look at her.

"Because I work here now, Stefan! And I'm assuming you do too…just my luck" Elena trailed off looking at the white coat he had on.

"Well, that's the LA luck for ya! See you around," Stefan said as he pat her shoulder and walked around her, whistling as he went.

Elena let out a sigh and she closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. She already knew she was gonna love her job.


	2. Chapter 2

**Ah. I am very glad you guys enjoyed the first chapter. Thank you for the reviews. I hope you enjoy chapter two just as much! Leave me a review letting me know what you think and things you'd want to see in future chapters! **

**Twitter: _diariesstelena**

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**XXXXXXXX**

It had been two weeks since Elena started her new job and to be quite honest, she was loving every second of it. With a larger population in LA than back home, she was always busy and helping with patients around the clock. She was beginning to get into the swing of things and was becoming quite the charmer in the staff room as of late, which was something that didn't go unnoticed by Stefan.

She was nice and sweet when needed to be, and assertive and bossy when required. She was becoming quick friends with Lexi and had lunch with her almost every single day. Elena and Lexi often talked about the gossip surrounding the staff at Sinai Medical. In a single sitting she had found out that Dr. Murphy dated nurse Britney, only to break up with her and end up marrying nurse McKenna. All very confusing, but Elena just listened, and nodded where necessary.

Elena had her apartment all set up now, and was more than happy with the way it turned out. Now that she had no roommates, she could design and decorate her apartment however she wanted. Her and Caroline had brunch last weekend, which was mostly spent listening to Caroline apologize about cracking Elena's head open. Elena assured her time and time again that it was okay, and she was fine. But Caroline was relentless and offered to pay for brunch, and buy Elena a cute headband type thing that would cover up the stitches.

Elena just laughed and agreed to whatever Caroline had wanted in that moment, because she had missed her quite the bit in the five years they had been apart.

Elena was more than happy when she woke up the next Monday morning and decided to get her day started with a nice jog, allowing herself to get familiar with the area she now lived in.

After her run, she came back, hopped into the shower and got ready for another week at work which was sure to be tiring, yet rewarding.

She walked into the hospital with her keys in one hand, and her coffee in another as she walked to the nurses room to get changed into her scrubs. She placed her coffee down and walked to her locker to grab her outfit.

She quietly hummed to herself in the empty room as she stripped down to her undergarments and pulled on her pants. Elena grabbed her shirt, and without putting it on, walked over to the board to see the schedule for today. She was scheduled to be in the children's wing today and she was more than happy to spend her day with the kids.

Elena quickly ran her eyes down the entire week but was interrupted by the door swinging open with a very shocked, and extremely red Stefan standing in the doorway.

"Oh, I- I-, I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were changing I'm so-sorry," Stefan said as he looked at Elena standing there clad in her hot pink bra that did wonders to emphasize her assets.

Elena laughed at the state Stefan was in just by seeing her shirtless. She laughed quietly to herself and put her shirt on before Stefan could walk away from the place he was apparently frozen in. This guy was really shy, huh, Elena thought to herself as she fixed her shirt and walked back towards her open locker.

"Oh would you loosen up? Never seen a girl in her bra before Doctor?" Elena teased as she put away her extra outfit in her locker and closed it, walking to grab her coffee from where she placed it down earlier.

"Um, I'm sorry Elena, I just came in to look at the schedule and get myself a cup of coffee," he explained, fumbling with the pen in his hand and avoiding eye contact.

"Stefan, it is perfectly okay, you didn't do anything wrong. Plus, I'm sure I gave your Monday morning a great start," she said with a flirtatious voice and a wink as she walked by him and reached her hand up to run it through his hair.

"Nice haircut," she added as she brushed past him, leaving him dumbfounded and blushing as he stood there groaning.

Stefan turned to lean his head on the doorframe and hit his head against it a couple of times before he finally moved to make his cup of coffee.

Elena was a fun girl, a pretty straight forward one too. It almost made Stefan blush just thinking about how straight forward she was. It wasn't that Stefan was completely innocent, or a virgin, but he was just extremely shy, and especially with a girl like Elena running around, he was especially vulnerable.

Stefan grabbed a cup, poured himself some coffee, ripped open a packet of sugar, mixed the contents of his cup and left to start his day.

**XXXXXXX**

"Everything looks good here, Frank, I'm just gonna pop in again around noon and see how those painkillers are treating you, mkay?" Elena asked politely as she scribbled some things down on her little notepad and put it back in her pocket.

"Okay, dear" Frank said with a smile and he got comfortable in bed and began to doze off again because of the medication.

Elena left with a smile and closed the door on her way out. Before she could go to the children's wing for the rest of the day, she was stopped by a cheery little voice.

"Ahh, I haven't seen you yet today, figured you'd be running around somewhere," Lexi said teasingly as she caught up with Elena and they both began walking down the ward.

Elena laughed and pulled her hair out of the loose pony it was in and put it up in a messy, but cute, bun on her head.

"Yeah, I'm headed to the kiddies now. What about you?" Elena asked as she fixed her hair.

"Oh you know me, doing nothing, but doing everything at the same time. Wanna grab some lunch today?" Lexi asked as she began to part ways.

"I'm actually scheduled for the kiddies through lunch today, lets do tomorrow?" Elena asked as she too began to part ways, about to head to the elevators.

"Sounds good! See ya," Lexi said with a smile as she walked away humming to herself quietly. Lexi was a very kind spirited soul. She was always doing things for others and looking to make people happy whenever she could – and she was really good at it.

Elena waited for the elevator to arrive and walked in when the doors opened, only to find herself rushing to hold the elevator for the hand that appeared between the doors when it was closing.

"Stefan, do you not like your hand attached to your arm?" Elena asked annoyed, as he stumbled into the lift with a shy smile on his face.

"I just needed a lift," Stefan said simply, trying to explain himself. Stefan looked at Elena and swore his heart started beating just a tad faster.

Elena had her hair up in a messy bun, her soft brown hair in a perfect pile on her head, her pink scrubs, and the perfect amount of make-up to complete a subtle look. No doubt, she looked good.

"You saw me, didn't you?" Elena asked with a huge smile, breaking Stefan from his train of thought.

"Pardon?" he got out, his throat and mouth feeling a little dry all of a sudden.

"You saw me in the elevator, and you wanted to come join me for a ride. It's okay, Stefan, I get it. You're attracted to me." Elena said matter-of-factly as she looked at him and tried to hide her smile by biting her lip.

Stefan narrowed his eyes at her and collected himself before he calmly responded, "I just have somewhere to be,"

Now it was Elena's turn to narrow her eyes at him. He sounded oddly calm. From past encounters with Stefan, he was usually flustered at Elena's advances. This caught her attention and piqued her interest.

"And where is that?" She asked with complete interest as she turned her entire body to face him and crossed her arms over her chest.

"Just going to the children's wing, check up on them and stuff," he explained as he looked at the little screen that flashed the floor number on it.

Elena turned back to face the doors as it opened, "well what do you know, I'm headed there too," she said with a smirk as she left the lift without even so much as a glance over her shoulder at Stefan.

**XXXXXXXX**

"This little piggy went all the way to the splash pad and had a picnic," Stefan said as he let go of a two year old's little pinky and began tickling her foot.

The little girl laughed and giggled at the top of her lungs as Stefan tickled her foot.

"Stehfaaaan!" the little girl got out in between her giggles as Stefan eased up and let her foot be for now.

"Okay, okay, I'll stop. Why don't you go play with the others, and I'll come by and see you tomorrow, mkay?" Stefan said sweetly as he picked up the little girl and placed her on the ground as she nodded and said her byes before she ran towards the other kids.

Stefan watched her run and smiled to himself a little. Stefan loved all the kids, and if he wasn't doing any major work he would always find time to come down and play with the little ones.

"That was incredibly adorable to watch, I gotta admit Salvatore," a voice came behind Stefan as he turned around and saw Elena leaning against the wall with her arms folded over her chest.

"How long have you been there?" Stefan asked as he go up off the bed and moved to walk towards her.

"Long enough to see the piggy family go to the mall, to school, the park and the splash pad," she said giggling at Stefan's playfulness.

Elena stood quietly behind Stefan as she watched him play with the little girl and it warmed her heart. She loved kids and to see Stefan play with them, showed a side of Stefan that she didn't know yet. Truth be told, Elena didn't know much about Stefan to begin with, but maybe that could change.

Stefan stood before him and abashedly lowered his head and scratched the back of his neck as Elena finished speaking.

"I just want to see these kids happy, is all," Stefan said as he looked back up at Elena and saw her nodding slowly.

"They are very cute, yes. It's just so sad to see them here instead of at home or something," Elena explained as she looked behind Stefan and saw all the kids playing with one another.

"That's why I come down whenever I get the chance. You should too, the kids would love you," Stefan said sweetly, but also with a little caution. Yeah, Elena was a seemingly sweet girl, but she also had quite the sass and mouth on her.

"I love kids, and I'm scheduled down here a couple times this week," she explained briefly.

"That's good, that's great," Stefan said, slowly finding more about Elena, which he wasn't about to complain about. He really wanted to get to know her, but was a bit intimidated by the aura she gave off. She was very flirty and very direct, all the things that Stefan wasn't.

Elena gave him a small smile, a genuine one, for the very first time. And she could have sworn the last time she gave a genuine smile was when she was 12, but she liked it. She liked having the hidden parts of her come out once in a while; it reminded her that she was still very much a human.

Stefan didn't miss the smile, and gently returned it.

"Well, I am gonna go do something productive…I'll catch up with you later," Elena said gently with another smile before she moved to touch Stefan's arm and let her hand linger for a couple seconds longer. _He has really nice arms, _Elena thought to herself as she made eye contact with him.

Stefan felt himself tense a bit under her touch, but didn't make any motion to show that he didn't enjoy it. The skin of her hand was soft, and warm. It sent little tingles up his arm and warmed his body in a very weird, but pleasant way.

Elena quickly dropped her hand, gave him another smile and moved to walk around him, leaving him standing all by himself, and with a warm fuzzy feeling throughout his body. This made him smile real big to himself. He didn't mind having Elena touch him at all. Not one bit.

**XXXXXXXX**

"And then she touched my arm, and it was really weird because she doesn't seem like the affectionate type, like at all, but it was also kinda nice? I don't know, Care, she's messing with my everything," Stefan explained as he cut into his steak, having Caroline listen to his every word.

Right after work, Caroline had called Stefan and asked him if he wanted to go out for dinner, something Stefan quickly agreed to.

"Yeah, well that's Elena for you. She may seem really flirty and direct and intimidating, but deep down she's just trying to protect herself. I'm just surprised she smiled at you, and with sincerity," Caroline said completely appalled.

"I was fairly surprised too, I mean, she's a wonderful girl, and beautiful too, but she has a lot of fire," Stefan said as he shoved a fry in his mouth.

"Why don't you get to know her," Caroline suggested with ease and she stole one of his fries. I mean, what was the harm in getting to know one another? They'd make great friends.

"I feel like if I get to know her, she might kick my ass," Stefan said with a roll of his eyes.

"Just ask for her number, and I promise you that she won't kick your ass. She's actually a really sweet girl once you get past the tough, flirty front she puts up," Caroline said.

"I did ask for her number, and you know what happened? She shut me down. Cold and hard." Stefan said grumbling the last few words as he ate some more of his fries.

Caroline just laughed at Stefan. He was acting like a kid who just took his favourite toy away from him.

"Here's an idea, why don't you wait for her to come to you? She'll get to know you, and eventually, she'll want your number and then bam, friends." Caroline explained as she sipped on her diet coke.

"Care, I'm not playing hard to get. Out of everyone you know, I would be the last person who would do that," he said.

"Okay, but maybe you need to quit the shy guy act and up your flirt game too! Come on, I've seen you flirt with girls all the time, why are you so modest all of a sudden," Caroline asked with genuine concern.

"I'm not modest! Elena is just, different," he said, for the lack of a better term to describe this one girl he met about a month ago.

"Different," Caroline said testing the word out, and narrowing her eyes at Stefan as he shrugged his shoulders at her, before Stefan could even register what had happened, Caroline's eyes popped back open and she sat up straight in her chair.

"You're crushing on her!" Caroline said in an accusatory manner as Stefan looked around to see if anyone was looking at them after her loud outburst.

"I'm not crushing on her," Stefan said lying to both Caroline and himself.

Caroline giggled and clapped her hands together at the thought of Stefan beginning to like Elena.

"Well, I'm going to have a little get together on Friday night now, and the two of you can finally see each other outside of the workplace and in cuter goddamn clothes because let's be honest, those scrubs ain't cute," Caroline said as she held up her hand and her index finger as if to make a point.

Stefan let out a long, deep sigh, "okay," he agreed simply before he called over the waiter for their bill.

"It'll be great!" Caroline said with excitement.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I'm glad many of you are enjoying it thus far! Thank you for the reviews and don't be afraid to let me know things you'd might be interested in seeing! **

**Twitter: _diariesstelena**

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**XXXXXX**

"And what are you having this party for again, Caroline?" Elena asked as she set up the music system that would be playing all night, and picked some appropriate tunes that would set the tone for the majority of the evening.

"I'm not having a party, just a small get together! And no reason in particular, just figured it would be nice for you to meet new people in a new town and build up your social circle..." Caroline explained as she trailed off, not explicitly stating, or wanting Elena to know that she was having this get together for her and Stefan.

"As long as you invited some eye candy, keep the alcohol coming and feed me, I'm fine with whatever," Elena threw over her shoulder as she got up to go change into her outfit for the night.

"There is an eye candy for you, yes." Caroline said as she followed Elena into the room to see if her outfit was appropriate, and would at least be appealing to the eye. Particularly Stefan's eye if she was being honest.

"An eye candy? As in, one, and one alone?" Elena asked through narrowed eyes, as she entered the room and began to strip.

"One or two, you know..." Caroline answered, suddenly showing great interest in the floral print of her own bedding.

"Uh huh. Well, I guess it'll do," Elena said as she picked her top up to put it on.

"Well, whatever happens, I need you to be yourself…you can be very intimidating at times, got it?" Caroline said in a snarky tone as she got up to leave the room.

Elena sighed at her friend and continued getting ready. Elena loved Caroline to death, but she could be the biggest pain in the ass. Her only hope was that she would have some fun tonight.

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

"Yeah, I mean it was a fairly easy move, nothing too hard," Elena explained as she nodded, drank her drink – which wasn't strong enough – and talked to a few new people she had just met about 10 minutes ago.

Caroline was busy running around making sure everything was running smoothly, and everyone was having a good time, that she almost missed it when Elena was shooting her daggers from across the room. To be completely honest, Elena wasn't interested in making small talk with some people she knew she would never speak to again. She just wanted to have a good time with her friend and get to bed. Her work days were long, and with her getting familiar with the work, she was given more responsibilities day by day.

Elena politely excused herself with a half-hearted smile as she moved to the kitchen to catch Caroline before she jet off again.

"Caroline please tell me you invited much more interesting people. If I have to sit through another conversation with Donnie over there, talking about how lonely he is, I might just end up sleeping with him so he could shut up – please don't make me do that," Elena said with a pout as she looked at Caroline who was just laughing at her.

"Okay, okay, you don't have to sleep with anyone, not tonight at least. Why don't you help me take this punch bowl out?" Caroline asked as she glanced at the clock on the wall behind Elena.

"Anything for you princess Care bear," Elena mocked as she grabbed the punch bowl from her and sauntered out of the kitchen to place the bowl down on the drinks table.

Elena was about to return to the kitchen to stuff her face with snacks, when the front door swung open and in walked Dr. Salvatore.

Elena let out a low whistle at the sight of him out of work attire. He was wearing a simple white v-neck that did wonders for his chest and arms, paired with black fitted jeans and some black boots on his feet. Stefan looked around first, looking for Caroline as he nervously ran his hand through his hair.

His look then fell on Elena as she stood there, staring at him, smiling to herself. Stefan walked on over to Elena and let out a nervous little chuckle, "Hi, Elena," he said simply. Elena could sense his nervousness all over again, and it drove her insane. Why on earth was he so nervous all the time? She had to admit, this shy personality was something different for Elena – it was adorable. She wasn't accustomed to having men who were genuine and shy, but instead was accustomed to the confident and jerky type.

"Well look who decided to show up, Dr. Hottie," Elena said with a wink as she turned around and grabbed a plastic cup and began to pour a drink for him.

"Yeah, had some work to do at the hospital, sorry that I'm late…I hope Caroline didn't notice, she might actually kill me," Stefan said as he got closer to Elena and was now directly behind her as she poured the drink.

Elena jumped a little, not expecting him to be so close to her in proximity, but calmed herself down and played it cool.

"It's Caroline," she said turning around, offering him the cup, "not much gets by her," Elena said with a soft laugh that got Stefan to smile at.

"Think you could help me out with that? Tell her I got here earlier?" Stefan asked as he nodded his thanks for the cup and took a sip.

Elena let her eyes scan down his entire body before she looked back up into his green eyes, "that depends, Salvatore, what do I get?" Elena asked flirtatiously, true to her nature.

Stefan blushed again at her forwardness, and decided to take a leap of faith as he scratched the back of his neck nervously, "dinner? With me?" Stefan said, finally finding some confidence.

This wiped the playful look off of Elena's face real quick. She wouldn't have expected him to ask her out on a date, she didn't think he had it in him. But she was pleased nonetheless. She quickly recovered and raised an eyebrow at him, "dinner? Did you just ask me out on a date?" Elena asked, trying to tease him a little, simply because she knew he would be a little uncomfortable.

"Why? Would you go on a date with me?" Stefan asked with a curious tone as he smiled at Elena. Stefan was quite proud of himself. The confident, flirty girl before him was clearly surprised at his forwardness, but he didn't mind one bit.

"Ask me again at the end of tonight," Elena said as the look in her eyes softened, as did her tone of voice, reverting back to the sweet Elena he had seen a glimpse of earlier that week in the children's wing.

"And if I don't see you?" Stefan asked, inching closer to her as their eyes maintained eye contact.

"Oh, you'll see me," Elena said with a ring of guarantee as she flashed her pearly white teeth at him.

**XXXXXXXXXX**

Stefan left Elena to socialize with others as he went off to look for Caroline. He figured he might as well make his presence known before he got a piece of her mind.

He found her sitting in a corner talking to a few girls he didn't know, but he decided to walk on over anyways.

"Hey, Care," Stefan said as she slung his arm around her shoulders, fully expecting her to brush him off and give him a good lecture.

"Stefan! You came!" She said excitedly as she reached up and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Sorry, I am being so rude, Stefan, this is Gwynne and Stacy, girls this is Stefan," she said introducing them all with the wave of her hand.

"Nice to meet you girls. Do you mind if I steal Caroline for a bit? She'll be right back I promise," Stefan said, not waiting to hear their answers as he walked away with Caroline in tow.

Stefan led them to a quieter spot in the living room before Caroline began speaking, "where the hell have you been? It is quarter past 9 already mister. I didn't throw this party for you, so you could not attend," she said in angry hushed whispers.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry. I got held up at the hospital. But if it makes you feel any better, I think I asked Elena out on a date…" Stefan said warily, not quite sure himself if that was what in fact happened.

Caroline squealed and jumped up and down in one place as Stefan finished his sentence, "what do you mean you think? Did she say yes? What did you say?" Caroline asked inquisitively.

"I'm not sure? It kinda just happened, and she told me to ask her again tonight," Stefan said confused.

"Well that means she's at least thinking about it, no?" Caroline said optimistically.

"Yeah, I suppose. But I don't think I can do it? I can barely have a conversation with her one on one without her flirting with me nonstop, can you imagine what it would be like on a date?" Stefan asked.

"Like I said, Stefan. You need to get to know her. This flirty front of hers is just that – a front. Once you chip away at her guarded exterior, you'll find the girl that I've known since forever, and you'll love her." Caroline said encouragingly as she got up and walked away, giving him the hint that he needs to get his ass up and go look for her.

**XXXXXXXXX**

Elena sat alone in a corner with a drink, playing around on her phone when Stefan finally spotted her. Why she was alone, he had no idea. Someone as beautiful like her could have been talking to any of the guys at the party right now. Stefan gave her a once over and let his eyes linger over her long, tanned legs in her white shorts that contrasted perfectly.

"And we're sitting alone in a corner because?" Stefan asked as he sat down, and took her empty cup and replaced it with his full one.

"Because I'm the new girl, remember? It's like high school all over again…" Elena said with a roll of her eyes, before she took a sip of her drink. But Stefan could sense the veiled insecurity in her statement, and could see some hidden truths in her eyes.

"Well, then we can sit alone together, I suppose. I don't much like Caroline's friends," he said, plopping down beside her, letting his right arm and leg line up with hers.

Elena stopped breathing for a second as he got comfortable, and stopped moving around. He sat fairly close to her, and Elena was grateful, but also a little wary.

"Caroline tends to attract the weird ones. Been that way since middle school," she said, letting her eyes wander over to Stefan's hands as he played with them nervously.

"I can only imagine. Any embarrassing stories you got for me?" he asked with a smile as he bumped his shoulder into hers.

"I'm afraid not, sorry. She would actually kill me," Elena said as she took another sip of her drink, and handed it to Stefan, offering him some. He gladly accepted and took a sip before giving it right back.

"Fair enough, what about you? Any embarrassing stories?" he asked as he looked over at her.

"My entire life is pretty embarrassing to say the least, nothing interesting." Elena said in a tight manner, hoping to end the conversation. She brought the cup up to her lips and drank the entire thing.

"I beg to differ," Stefan said defiantly as he stood up, and reached his hand out so she could take it.

"Come on, let's go somewhere a little quieter," he said with a smile as she took his hand and stood up.

"And what would we do in a quieter place?" Elena asked suggestively as she began walking, not letting go of his hand.

"Talk," he said simply, as he squeezed her hand and let it fall, taking the lead and leading her out of Caroline's apartment.

**XXXXXXXXXXX**

"Stefan if I fall to my death out here I swear to god I'm gonna come back to life and shoot you in the knees," Elena threatened as she tried to climb over a high fence that was in between some old parking lot, and a great view of LA.

"You won't fall to your death. I saved you once, I can do it again," Stefan announced with a great big smile as Elena finally made it safely down.

Elena grumbled some expletives at him and walked ahead of him, as he followed silently, chuckling every now and then.

"Turn to your right up there," Stefan said as he caught up and led her through a couple of trees to an open place that overlooked a part of LA.

Elena stopped in her tracks and looked at the city all lit up and beautiful at night. She could only imagine what the sunrise would look like up here.

"This is beautiful," She muttered as she took in the sight. Stefan walked up behind her and placed his hand on her shoulder as he nodded, and hummed in agreement.

"So, what did you bring me up here to talk about?" Elena asked as she turned around and was face to face with Stefan. She felt her breath catch in her throat at being so close to him. He smelled great – like cologne, mouthwash and a hint of alcohol.

"Well," he said, his breath fanning over her face, making her lick her lips. Stefan let out a low chuckle at the way Elena was reacting to his proximity. The confident, flirty Elena was certainly not present at this very moment.

"I wanna know more about Elena Gilbert," he finished as he moved away from her, leaving her standing there with her eyes closed.

Elena laughed at the way this man that she knew for a little over a month, was making her feel.

"And why must we talk about me? Why not you?" Elena asked accusingly as she sat down on a large rock and patted the space next to her, signalling Stefan to take a seat.

"We can talk about me if you want. My full name is Stefan Antonio Salvatore, I was born on July 23rd in California, I have an older brother named Damon who lives in San Diego, my parents are currently retired and living their dream back home in Italy, I'm a doctor as you know, my favourite colour is green, I can cook fairly well, lost my virginity when I was 16, I love dogs, but hate cats, when I was a kid I fell and I cracked my head open, um, what else…" Stefan said trailing off jokingly as he quickly rattled off random facts about himself. This made Elena giggle at his silliness.

"Okay that's enough, I get it, you wanna get to know me," Elena said through her giggles as Stefan laughed himself.

"So, Elena…what are you all about?" Stefan asked, fully turning his body towards her and crossing his legs so he sat face to face with her.

"Stefan, I'm not as interesting as you might think. I'm not that type of person who has stories upon stories to tell that builds character. I don't have very many memories of happiness to share…" Elena said slowly, deciding that honesty would be the best way to start.

"Try me," he said simply, not letting up.

"Boy, there is just no stopping you is there," Elena said as crossed her legs, clearly preparing for a lengthy conversation.

"Would I be here if I wasn't actually interested in getting to know you?" he asked.

"Fair enough, Salvatore. Um, I was born in Atlanta on January 9th , I have a younger brother Jeremy who lives with my Aunt Jenna, I went to Cheshire high school…um, I have a dog back home, and that is about as interesting as I get…" Elena said, wanting to wrap things up. She didn't need to get into the details of her life at this very moment.

"When did you know you wanted to become a nurse?" Stefan asked as continued to stare at this brunette sitting before him.

"In the 12th grade…I spent quite some time in the hospital scene and admired their work…I think it's very rewarding knowing that you can help people…what about you? When did you know you wanted to be a doctor?"

Stefan looked away from her and over to the city lights below them, "when my grandfather passed away, I knew that this is what I wanted to do. To be able to help people in ways that he wasn't," Stefan said simply. He was expecting Elena to nod in silence, but was surprised when he felt her hand grab his and link their fingers.

"I'm sorry, I know how hard it must have been, losing someone who means so much to you. You put so much blind faith into something, anything, that you know would keep them safe but then life has its own way of showing you that it is only temporary," she said as she squeezed his hand, and he squeezed back.

"Spoken like someone who has felt quite a bit of pain," Stefan remarked quietly as he looked over at Elena and saw her looking down at their linked hands.

"Enough to remind me what is important in life, yes," she said as she looked up and saw Stefan looking back at her with earnest eyes that looked like they cared so much. But for what? For who? Some girl he just met?

"It gets better. I know that it is probably the last thing you wanna hear, but it does. Eventually you don't have to pretend anymore, and you can find that one thing that reminds you to hang on and that in the end, everything will be okay," Stefan said as he too looked down at their hands.

Stefan was the first one to pull his hand away and Elena just put her hands underneath her ass and sat on them, hoping this conversation would go back to their playful banter.

"I know…thank you, though," Elena said looking up at him with another one of those genuine smiles that Stefan loved so much.

Stefan just smiled back and then looked back out over the city. They sat in silence for a bit before Elena was the one to break the silence.

"So, you lost your virginity at 16 huh?" Elena said in her flirty voice again.

"Out of all the things I said, that is what stuck with you?" he asked, blushing again as he scratched the back of his neck once again. Elena noticed he did that a lot when he was nervous.

"Well, I mean yeah. You kinda just threw it in real casual," Elena said, laughing at the way Stefan was clearly embarrassed now.

"Her name was Britney…and I'm not talking about this with you," he said shaking his head as he got up and began walking back down the path they came from.

"Oh come on, Doctor! Don't go all shy on me now," Elena said as she got up and ran after this man that made her want to destroy the walls she had built up so high. But she couldn't. Not yet.

**XXXXXXXX**

"Well, this is me. I think Caroline might just kill us for ditching her party though," Elena said.

Stefan laughed, "I think she'll be okay with it…" he said as he looked up at the sky and back down at Elena.

"Thanks for the 10 mile hike. I probably smell and look like ass now, so I'm gonna shower and crawl into bed." Elena said, trying to fake her annoyed tone.

"No problem, and naw, you don't look like ass that much," Stefan said jokingly, but it got Elena to smack his arm.

"I am very attractive, thank you very much," Elena said, completely tooting her very own horn.

"I think I was meant to ask you if you wanted to go out for dinner, remember?" Stefan said as he put both his hands into his pockets.

"After saying I look like ass, you can forget about it Salvatore," Elena said as she turned to walk away.

"Aw come on! That isn't fair! You told me to ask again at the end of the night!" he called out behind her.

"Ask me again on Monday! Good night, Doctor!" Elena said playfully as she winked at him and blew him a kiss.

"_Now¸ _can I at least have your number?" Stefan yelled out.

"Mmm, nope. I'll get a hold of you if I need you!" Elena said as she laughed and walked into her condo.

"Goddammit, this girl," Stefan said frustratingly as he ran his hand through his hair and began his walk all the way home.


End file.
